KRI Sriwijaya-100 Ready to Be Deployed in Disaster-Response Missions

Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Government has said Indonesia’s first aircraft carrier, KRI Sriwijaya-100, is ready to be deployed in a range of military operations other than war, including disaster response.

“Indonesia now has a ship that can serve as a floating base at sea, named KRI Sriwijaya-100,” said Brigadier General Rico Sirait, head of the Defence Information Bureau at the Ministry of Defence, in a press release issued by the Government Communications Agency in Jakarta on Saturday.

Rico explained that, as the world’s largest archipelagic country, with thousands of islands and a vast maritime area, Indonesia faces a high level of exposure and risk from natural disasters.

In a disaster emergency, particularly when land access is completely cut off, a floating base can provide a vital solution, ensuring that logistical aid and rescue operations reach isolated areas quickly.

With its range of capabilities, KRI Sriwijaya-100 is considered the most suitable vessel for transporting various types of relief supplies.

According to specifications cited in the Government Communications Agency’s release, KRI Sriwijaya-100 is about 180 metres long and weighs 12,000 tonnes.

The ship is designed with a spacious flight deck, allowing it to operate various types of helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles (drones) directly from the sea.

This tactical flexibility means that defence operations and humanitarian missions need no longer depend entirely on land-based facilities.

“This capability is very important for Indonesia, which has a vast maritime area, thousands of islands and a high risk of disasters,” Rico added.

The floating base has been prepared to support a range of humanitarian missions across the country, from delivering large-scale logistical assistance and evacuating disaster victims to conducting medical operations and providing emergency response in the hardest-to-reach areas.

In addition to strengthening maritime and humanitarian capabilities, the arrival of KRI Sriwijaya-100 also has wider strategic significance for national self-reliance.

The ship’s maintenance and modification involve the domestic defence industry, providing an opportunity to accelerate the development of the national defence industry’s technological capacity, expertise and capabilities.

Rico said he was confident that the aircraft carrier would strengthen Indonesia’s maritime defence and humanitarian response.